India stands ground after US orders 25% penalty, says it's unfair, unjustified
Trump went ahead with his threat of levying an additional penalty over India's purchases of Russian energy within a week of imposing a reciprocal tariff of 25% on India on July 31. The move increased trade-related tensions between the two sides amid continuing negotiations on a trade deal.
'We reiterate that these actions are unfair, unjustified and unreasonable,' external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, noting that the US has targeted India's oil imports from Russia in recent days.
'India will take all actions necessary to protect its national interests,' Jaiswal said in a statement.
Jaiswal said it was 'extremely unfortunate' that the US had chosen to impose additional tariffs on India 'for actions that several other countries are also taking in their own national interest'.
He was alluding to continuing imports of Russian energy, especially LNG, by European Union (EU) member states that have paid Russia $105.6 billion for gas imports since the start of the invasion of Ukraine. Almost 87% of all EU imports of Russian LNG went to Spain, France or Belgium, people familiar with the matter said.
Jaiswal said the Indian side has already made clear New Delhi's position on energy trade with Russia, including the fact that imports are based on market factors and are done with the overall objective of ensuring the energy security of India's 1.4 billion people.
As Trump repeatedly targeted India's purchases of energy and military hardware from Russia in recent days, New Delhi has defended its long-standing strategic relations with Moscow and said these ties should not be seen through the prism of a third country.
Trump has also contended that India is selling much of the oil it imports from Russia in the open market and helping fund Russia's war against Ukraine. However, the people noted that the US President has largely been silent on China's imports of Russian oil, which exceed those of India.
India substantially increased purchases of discounted Russian oil after the West slapped sanctions on Moscow over the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
10 minutes ago
- First Post
Ignored for Alaska talks, Zelenskyy serves a warning: Putin will try to ‘deceive' Trump on ceasefire
Sidelined in the Alaska summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned US President Donald Trump against deception by Vladimir Putin. The warning came as he and European partners pressed Trump to not give a free pass to the Russian leader. As US President Donald Trump prepares to host Vladimir Putin in Alaska, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that the Russian leader intends to 'deceive' the United States. But the Russian leader is not his only concern. Zelenskyy and his European partners are primarily concerned that Trump could cut a deal with Putin about the Russian war in Ukraine without Ukraine's involvement. They are also concerned that Trump could pressure Ukraine into a deal friendly to Putin, such as accepting his demand of handing over the entire eastern Ukraine's Donbas region to Russia as a condition to end the war. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Amid such fears, Zelenskyy has spend recent days putting up a united front with European leaders and conveying to Trump that any deal without Ukraine and Europe's participation and approval will be meaningless. To make it crystal-clear, Germany will convene a summit of Ukrainian and European leaders, including the European Union (EU), with Trump and his deputy JD Vance on Wednesday. Ahead of the Europe-US summit, Zelenskyy warned, 'We understand the Russians' intention to try to deceive America. We will not allow this. I greatly appreciate the determination of President Trump to stop the deaths in war. Many people give their lives every day. But the only root cause of these killings is Putin's desire to fight and manipulate everyone he comes into contact with.' Even as Zelenskyy and European leaders press Trump to not be deceived, they are well aware of the president's record so far. He has not taken any punitive action so far and has instead trashed Ukraine time to time — including on Monday when he slammed Zelenskyy for not surrendering Ukraine's territories to end the war. Even when his deadline passed last week and Putin did not agree to a ceasefire, Trump did nothing and instead announced the summit in Alaska. Trump sets low expectations as Zelenskyy considers concessions Ahead of the Alaska summit, Trump has set the expectations low, saying that it would be a 'feel-out meeting' intended to see if the Putin was ready to reach an agreement. He said that he would know within the first two minutes of the meeting whether the Russian leader wanted to end the war. Trump has said that any deal would involve 'some swapping of territories'. Zelenskyy has rejected giving any handover of Ukrainian land to Russia, saying that Ukraine 'will not give Russia any awards for what it has done' and that 'Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier'. Zelenskyy further said, 'Any decisions that are without Ukraine are at the same time decisions against peace. They will not bring anything. These are dead decisions. They will never work.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Zelenskyy, however, is willing to cede territory that is already controlled by Russia, which would freezing battle lines, according to The Telegraph. However, Zelenskyy is not willing to cede any Ukraine-held territory to Russia and the surrender of Russia-held territories would be subjected to conditions like security guarantees, the report said. Separately, The Associated Press reported Ukrainian officials as saying that Zelenskyy would be willing to sign a peace deal that would de facto recognise Ukraine's inability to regain lost territories militarily. The report suggests that Zelenskyy would be willing to see de facto recognition of Russia-controlled territories but no de jure —legal— recognition.
Mint
10 minutes ago
- Mint
Independence Day 2025: From Srinagar to Chennai, Har Ghar Tiranga rallies spark patriotic fervour
Independence Day 2025: From Srinagar to Chennai, Har Ghar Tiranga rallies spark patriotic fervour | In Pics 15 Photos . Updated: 12 Aug 2025, 08:45 PM IST Share Via India is set to celebrate its 79th Independence Day on August 15. To mark the occasion, people from across the country are participating in the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign. From rallies in Srinagar to parades in Banaskantha, citizens are celebrating with patriotic zeal and enthusiasm. 1/15Srinagar: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah addresses the Tiranga Rally at the Boulevard on the banks of Dal Lake in Srinagar. Celebrations were held ahead of the 79th Independence Day on August 15. (@CM_JnK X) 2/15New Delhi: BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj takes part in the Har Ghar Tiranga bike rally, which ran from Bharat Mandapam to Major Dhyan Chand Stadium. (@gupta_rekha X) 3/15Banaskatha, Gujarat: BSF soldiers, police and locals march with the tricolour. The Tiranga Rally was held at Nadabet on Tuesday. (@BSF_Gujarat X) 4/15Banaskatha, Gujrat : Security forces and locals join the BSF parade showcased unity and patriotism. (@BSF_Gujarat X) 5/15New Delhi CM Rekha Gupta greets the Har Ghar Tiranga bike rally, which began from Bharat Mandapam on Tuesday. (@gupta_rekha X) 6/15New Delhi: Union ministers and MPs greet the Tiranga MP bike rally. It covered the route to Major Dhyan Chand Stadium. (@gupta_rekha X) 7/15Nagpur: Citizens run in the 'Tiranga Marathon' for patriotism, organised by Nagpur Municipal Corporation ahead of I-Day. (Chandrakant Paddhane) 8/15Surat: Locals take part in the Tiranga Yatra at Y Junction. The march was held ahead of Independence Day celebrations. (Ashok Munjani) 9/15Srinagar: Security forces hold the tricolour at the Dal Lake rally ahead of the 79th Independence Day. (Mohammad Amin War) 10/15Chennai: Government employees wave the tricolour for Har Ghar Tiranga. The campaign urges every home to hoist the national flag. (AFP) 11/15Chennai: People join the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign with the national flag. The drive promotes hoisting the tricolour in every household. (AFP) 12/15Bishnupur, Manipur: MLA Tongbram Robindro Singh leads a Tiranga Yatra. The march took place at Thangalawai Village on Monday (Vishma Ahanthem) 13/15Srinagar: People take part in the Tiranga rally ahead of I-Day. (Mohammad Amin War) 14/15Srinagar: LG Manoj Sinha and CM Omar Abdullah join the Tiranga rally together. The event highlighted unity ahead of I-Day. (Mohammad Amin War)
Hindustan Times
10 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Time for India to have big and quick reforms
The 50% tariff imposed by the US government on Indian merchandise exports goes beyond just trade economics and represents complex geopolitical issues that, hopefully, will get resolved over time. This is an opportunity for the industry and the government to work together to accelerate economic reforms and make India truly competitive. Indian industry stands behind the government and will do whatever it takes to make the country an economic superpower. In the short term, we certainly need to accelerate bilateral agreements with the European Union (EU), and other countries and trading blocs. Second, immediate relief needs to be provided to the impacted sectors, especially labour-intensive micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This relief should be significant and quick and can be provided either as financial support or by other measures such as facilitating e-commerce, and customs duty exemption on import of raw materials for exports. Before I talk about factor market reforms, I'd like to touch upon the ease of doing business, which is a critical enabler. Substantial work by the Centre and the states is underway and deserves to be complimented. This is a long journey and requires extensive stakeholder consultations and benchmarking with competing Asian manufacturing economies. The focus must continue, particularly with regard to construction permits, environmental clearances, decriminalisation of economic laws, customs processes, and labour laws. More forums like the GST Council with representations from the Centre and the states can be constituted for country-wide implementations. New labour codes that include flexible working models, allowing hiring for all business activities for fixed periods (fixed term employment), relaxing number of daily working hours subject to a weekly cap and employment of women in night shifts while ensuring their safety, flexibility in hiring and termination process such as rationalising government approval for workmen retrenchment (from 100 to 300) are all urgently required. Further, competing economies like Vietnam provide greater flexibility in wage adjustments, subject to maintenance of basic salary, and more flexibility in making changes to the workforce, which helps businesses better navigate dynamic changes in the external environment. While the Union government can take the lead, state governments will need to work closely with it, as labour is a part of the concurrent list. Deep structural reforms are now needed to make our factor markets efficient, improve the business environment, ensure global competitiveness, and turbocharge the economy. While there are many areas, I share a few themes like land, electricity, taxation, de-risking supply chains, and mining that need major changes. One, to increase the availability of land, easier and speedier transfer, and clearer titles are now urgently necessary. Surplus land with the government and public sector undertakings can also be unlocked to increase the supply and make land acquisition costs affordable. Reforms that help in automatic change in land use subject to safeguards, and increasing floor area ratios, will help keep land costs down. These, together with modernising land ownership records, digitising and tokenising titles, and clearer and fair acquisition processes, can propel investments and reduce costs for both MSMEs and large businesses. Two, reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy supply is absolutely necessary for industry's competitiveness. Reforms to help distribution companies become financially self-sustaining, including privatising distribution, eliminating cross-subsidies in tariffs in many sectors, and creating transmission capacity, are imperative. Gains from reduction in transmission and distribution (T&D) losses could also help make up for any shortfall in revenues because of industrial and commercial tariff reduction. Post award, delays in signing pre-purchase agreements (PPAs) are hindering the speed of execution; PPAs need to be expedited. In addition, reduced regulatory complexity for captive power plants can make enterprises more competitive. Three, reforms in both the GST rates and the procedures need to be fast-tracked. Reduction of rates will no doubt spur demand. Streamlining of the input tax credit mechanism is also required. The increase in demand would address the impact of the rate change when it comes to revenue neutrality. For procedural ease, one company should be subject to one audit irrespective of the number of states it operates in, and states and the Centre must rely on each other. Standardisation of audit procedures to be followed by states, accountability for notices issued, and creation of a Central Appellate Tribunal are required. Four, the recent challenges with respect to rare earth minerals illustrate the risk embedded in our current supply chains. The list of critical inputs and products, for which India is critically dependent on imports, is available. Compressors and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are two examples where there is significant potential to increase domestic manufacturing. Schemes such as the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and, if required, joint ventures with global businesses — including those from China — that have the technology and know-how need to be considered. Indian businesses should also be more vigilant towards supply chain risks, enhance their competitiveness and invest in new areas where India is dependent on imports. Five, strength in the mining sector not only adds to economic activity but also strengthens the manufacturing sector. The exploration of mineral reserves in the country needs to be accelerated. Amending the terms of exploration licences to include the right to mine in case of a successful discovery and increasing the area limits for a player to prospect and mine can make Indian mineral exploration more attractive. Production of iron ore and coal can be increased by making more deposits that are currently with the public sector available for mining under joint ventures — and by nudging the states. After the award of a mining lease, it takes two to three years to get various approvals. Single-window approval for various clearances, including forest and environmental, can result in faster implementation of mining operations after a lease is awarded. Finally, the government should consider undertaking disinvestment and asset monetisation. This would facilitate the flow of private capital, act as a buffer for foreign direct investment (FDI), strengthen government finances, and improve business sentiment. Between disinvestments and investments in newly-opened sectors, we could target $200 billion in FDI over the next 18 months, which will be in addition to significant domestic capital available. There are significant opportunities for big, and pragmatic reforms in many sectors, and this is the right time to pursue them. Rajiv Memani is president, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The views expressed are personal.
